Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund Invests $675,000 in Unum Group (NYSE:UNM)

Kentucky Retirement Systems Insurance Trust Fund acquired a new stake in Unum Group (NYSE:UNM) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund acquired 9,248 shares of the financial services provider’s stock, valued at approximately $675,000.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Barrett & Company Inc. lifted its stake in Unum Group by 300.0% in the fourth quarter. Barrett & Company Inc. now owns 396 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $29,000 after buying an additional 297 shares during the period. Kestra Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Unum Group in the 4th quarter valued at $38,000. Capital Performance Advisors LLP bought a new stake in shares of Unum Group in the 3rd quarter valued at $31,000. Versant Capital Management Inc lifted its position in shares of Unum Group by 26.4% during the 4th quarter. Versant Capital Management Inc now owns 766 shares of the financial services provider’s stock valued at $56,000 after acquiring an additional 160 shares during the period. Finally, Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. boosted its stake in Unum Group by 28.8% during the fourth quarter. Thurston Springer Miller Herd & Titak Inc. now owns 800 shares of the financial services provider’s stock worth $58,000 after acquiring an additional 179 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 86.57% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on UNM shares. Barclays upped their price objective on shares of Unum Group from $76.00 to $85.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Monday, January 6th. Piper Sandler upped their price target on Unum Group from $82.00 to $87.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Truist Financial raised their price objective on Unum Group from $70.00 to $75.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, November 1st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reaffirmed a “neutral” rating and set a $79.00 target price (up from $74.00) on shares of Unum Group in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of Unum Group from $81.00 to $91.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and ten have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Unum Group presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $81.17.

Unum Group Stock Performance

NYSE UNM opened at $74.99 on Thursday. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $74.25 and a 200-day moving average price of $66.55. The firm has a market cap of $13.69 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 7.92, a PEG ratio of 1.13 and a beta of 0.80. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.32, a current ratio of 0.29 and a quick ratio of 0.28. Unum Group has a 1 year low of $48.38 and a 1 year high of $79.43.

Unum Group (NYSE:UNM) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 4th. The financial services provider reported $2.03 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.14 by ($0.11). Unum Group had a return on equity of 14.91% and a net margin of 13.81%. As a group, equities research analysts predict that Unum Group will post 9.15 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Unum Group Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, February 14th. Investors of record on Friday, January 24th were issued a dividend of $0.42 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, January 24th. This represents a $1.68 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.24%. Unum Group’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 17.74%.

Unum Group announced that its board has initiated a share repurchase program on Tuesday, February 18th that authorizes the company to buyback $1.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization authorizes the financial services provider to reacquire up to 7.4% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are usually a sign that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP Timothy Gerald Arnold sold 10,000 shares of Unum Group stock in a transaction on Wednesday, November 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $76.92, for a total transaction of $769,200.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president now directly owns 54,827 shares in the company, valued at $4,217,292.84. The trade was a 15.43 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.93% of the company’s stock.

Unum Group Company Profile

Unum Group, together with its subsidiaries, provides financial protection benefit solutions primarily in the United States, the United Kingdom, Poland, and internationally. It operates through Unum US, Unum International, Colonial Life, and Closed Block segment. The company offers group long-term and short-term disability, group life, and accidental death and dismemberment products; supplemental and voluntary products, such as individual disability, voluntary benefits, and dental and vision products; and accident, sickness, disability, life, and cancer and critical illness products.